Phoenix still dreaming of a final flourish
NAMED after the late River Phoenix, Waterford striker Phoenix Patterson is a dream for headline writers – even more so when he grabs a golden goal to fire his team into the last four of the Extra. ie FAI Cup, as he did on Friday night.
Phoenix from the flames. Phoenix from the ashes. Take your pick. The affable 22-yearold from High Wycombe doesn’t mind. He’s comfortable in the spotlight, as reflected in his Christian name only on the back of his blue shirt.
In front of a jubilant 3,600 crowd at the RSC, that included proud parents Gordon and Paula, Patterson crowned a night of unfettered joy in the Deise with a wonder strike to detonate Dundalk’s FAI Cup ambitions.
The 3-2 win puts the Blues 90 minutes away from the final and Patterson may yet get a shot at following Troy Parrott, his former Spurs Under 23 teammate, as a scorer at the Aviva this year.
‘That we are one game away from the final is in our heads now. We’ll concentrate on the next tie, but we’ll also concentrate on our league games,’ he said.
It was Patterson’s pearler that crushed Dundalk, a master blaster into the top corner midway through that second half after he slalomed in from the left touchline.
‘I practise those shots in training a lot. So when I cut inside there was only one thing on my mind – to hit it far post. Thankfully, it went in exactly where I wanted it so I’m super happy.’
‘To score on an occasion like this, it’s my favourite goal, definitely,’ he beamed.
Patterson felt the result was merited as the Blues bounced back after falling behind early on.
‘I thought that when we settled into the game, we were good. We deserved to win and we were a threat going forward on the counter-attack, creating chances.
‘It was only at the end when they got their second goal that they maybe could nick something.’
The Blues have now beaten St Pat’s and Dundalk on their Cup run and are aching to go one better than last year’s last-gasp 1-0 loss to Bohemians in the semi-finals.
‘We have full belief in our squad and team and all the staff, and everybody associated with this club believes that we can get to the final and also win the promotion play-off. That’s our twin goal,’ said
Patterson who is thriving under new manager Danny Searle, added: ‘There’s such a good vibe around the place, coming into training everyone is happy and smiling. Long may it continue.’
For Dundalk manager, Stephen O’Donnell, the FAI Cup exit was a huge blow and it raises questions about the team’s mentality as they face the final six league games of the season.
O’Donnell kept his staff and squad bolted in the dressing room for an hour after the final whistle, and made no apologies for doing so. ‘When you lose to a First Division club in the cup, you don’t hop on the bus and go up the road. There has to be a post-mortem,’ said O’Donnell.
‘You want to be at the Aviva. It’s the best day in the calendar. We’re bitterly disappointed we won’t be there.
‘When you take the lead, as we did last week and again tonight, you should go on to win both games, and we didn’t.
‘In the first half we started well but when we give up a goal it seems to rock us a little bit.
‘Waterford have attacking players who’d be good in the Premier Division and they took advantage.
‘If it was the worst weekend possible last week (losing 3-2 to UCD), this is even worse. It tears you,’ he said.
Dundalk’s last six results on the park read: lost, won, lost, drew, lost, lost. In that time, they’ve coughed up 13 goals and blown leads.
On current form, securing a top-three finish to guarantee a Euro qualification won’t be easy.
‘For the second and third quarter of the season our trajectory was very good, since then it’s dipped. We’re angry.
‘People will say we’re fragile, we’re vulnerable. I understand that. We seem to be owning games and giving up cheap goals.
‘Our backs are against the wall. Let’s show what we’re about. How do we respond? We’ll see,’ said O’Donnell, who is committed to the long haul at Oriel Park.
‘I’m not walking away. It’s in our first season. We’ve got our club back. We will be successful but these things take time.
‘At Pat’s, it took time to build. We came second last year and won the (FAI) Cup.’
‘The break might not be a bad thing. We’ve six games left, four at home. What are we about?
‘Where are we as regards substance? Do we have character underneath the bonnet? We’ll find out,’ he added.
“We all believe
that we can get to the final”